Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman received a red carpet welcome from President Donald Trump on Tuesday, on his first visit to the United States since the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Trump laid on a noisy military flypast featuring F-35 stealth fighters that Washington will sell to Riyadh as the de facto Saudi ruler arrived at the White House.
Cannon fire and a parade of horses also greeted the Saudi prince as Trump doubles down on Washington's burgeoning alliance -- and his own personal bond -- with the key Middle Eastern ally.
Portugal soccer legend Cristiano Ronaldo, who plays in Saudi Arabia, will also be at the White House for the gala day of events, a White House official told AFP.
Trump has made a priority of boosting ties with the oil-rich Gulf kingdom and said on Monday he would sell coveted F-35 stealth fighters to Saudi Arabia, calling it a "great ally".
The move comes despite concerns from Israel and warnings from US officials that China could steal technological knowledge about the jets.
In another area of past contention, Trump will sign a deal on a framework for civilian nuclear cooperation, a US official and a source familiar with the negotiations said.
'Honoring Saudi Arabia'
The 40-year-old prince has fostered close ties with Trump and his family over the years -- a relationship burnished by a lavish welcome and $600 billion in investment pledges when the president visited Saudi Arabia in May.
Saudi Arabia is also expected to announce a "multi-billion dollar investment" in AI infrastructure in the United States on Tuesday, the US official added.
Trump will meanwhile push Prince Mohammed to normalize relations with Israel as he seeks a wider Middle East peace deal after the war in Gaza.
"We're more than meeting," Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Friday when asked about the visit. "We're honoring Saudi Arabia, the Crown Prince."
Trump will host the prince in the Oval Office, while later in the day First Lady Melania will hold a gala dinner.
The Saudi heir to the throne is looking forward to a fresh start on his first US trip since the murder and dismembering of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents sparked global outrage.
The killing also chilled relations with Washington, as US intelligence suggested that Prince Mohammed approved the operation inside the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul, an allegation which Saudi authorities deny.
Khashoggi's widow, Hanan Elatr Khashoggi, told CNN that her husband's killing had "destroyed my life" and she hoped Washington would remember that as it seeks ties with Riyadh.
"I hope they look at the American values of human rights and (democracy)" besides any deal and selling weapons, she said.
Security Guarantees
Prince Mohammed will have his own agenda, seeking firmer US security guarantees after Israeli strikes in September on Qatar, an iron-clad US ally, rattled the wealthy Gulf region.
Along with the F-35 jets, Riyadh is seeking to buy advanced air and missile defense systems. It will also push hard for access to the high-tech chips it needs to fuel its AI ambitions, experts said.
But Saudi Arabia is unlikely to agree to normalization with Israel at this stage, despite Trump's aim for the grand prize of Riyadh joining the Abraham Accords that he launched in his first term.
Potential Saudi moves towards normalization in return for security and energy guarantees were put on hold after the outbreak of Israel's devastating war in Gaza in October 2023.
Riyadh appears in no mood to budge without any progress on its international push for a Palestinian state.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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